2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings: Starting Pitchers, Part 1 (March)
Our starting pitching rankings will be split into two parts. Today's edition will examine only the top five tiers of starters, as determined by our staff's composite rankings (which differ a bit from my own evaluations where noted). Using the composite rankings to guide discussion helps to highlight personal preferences while also providing a more balanced view of […]
Fantasy Baseball Draft Values: Mitch Moreland
Flipping through NFBC ADP numbers recently, I saw Mitch Moreland sitting at 231, 20th among first baseman, and thought, “Wait, didn’t he have a 'breakout' season last year?” Editor's note: Read about more draft values and sleepers with our daily updated list. Make sure to also bookmark our fantasy baseball rankings dashboard. Our rankings assistant […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings: Outfield, Part 2 (March)
Smoothly transitioning from yesterday's top four tiers to today's best of the rest, let's start my overvalued/undervalued list with a player who recently snuck up from tier 5 to tier 4 and thus snuck his way into this column. Editor's note: Be sure to also check out our 2016 fantasy baseball rankings dashboard. It's already loaded up […]
Yu Darvish (SP, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~105 CURRENT ADP: 119.3 ANALYSIS: Yu Darvish hasn't pitched since August 9, 2014 due to Tommy John surgery. He missed his age 28 campaign, a time frame when most pitchers are hitting their prime. In 22 starts in 2014, Darvish had a 3.06 ERA, a 1.26 WHIP and a 182/49 K/BB ratio. He […]
Rougned Odor (2B, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~85 CURRENT ADP: 99 ANALYSIS: Rougned Odor smells like a winner in 2016. In fact, I'm not sure you can even call him a sleeper because he has the potential to be a top-five player at his position. His numbers from 2015 were not overwhelming at first glance, but don't overlook the […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings: Outfield, Part 1 (March)
This is the fourth and final update to our outfield staff rankings. Once again, I was joined by colleagues Kyle Bishop, Bill Dubiel, Brad Johnson, Nick Mariano, Max Petrie, and Harris Yudin. In case you missed them, you can see our updated March tiered rankings and analysis breaking down our thoughts for catcher, first base, […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Third Base Rankings (March)
Oh yeah, you know you love yourself some hot corner action. Third base is one of those premier power spots where you know your team can’t be slouching. If you don't know us by now, the seven rankers are Brad Johnson, Kyle Bishop, Max Petrie, Harris Yudin, Jeff Kahntroff, Bill Dubiel, and myself. In case […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Shortstop Rankings (March)
Welcome to our final round of rankings. We've been guiding you throughout the offseason and it has all culminated to this. These rankings will be your guide in fantasy drafts, and while they shouldn't be seen as an end-all, be-all assessment, it's wise to have an understanding of where the market values the players you […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings: Second Base (March)
It seems like only yesterday that we kicked off our preseason coverage back in December with the first round of our RotoBaller staff rankings. Just kidding – it feels like an eternity whenever we’re waiting for baseball to return. But the weather is warming, the days are getting longer, and spring training is in full […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered First Base Rankings (March)
Many fantasy baseball drafts have already been held, and there are more on the way. I finally have a drafted team to look over every single day and check for injuries (so far, so good), so all is right in the world. But for those of you who have yet to draft, we've got the rankings and […]
2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Catcher Rankings (March)
Welcome to our final round of rankings. We've been guiding you throughout the offseason and it's all culminated to this. These rankings will be your guide in fantasy drafts, and while they shouldn't be seen as an end-all, be-all assessment, it's wise to have an understanding of where the market values the players you seek. […]
Change of Scenery: Four Hitters on New Teams in 2016
It happens every year. For numerous reasons, including free agency, impending free agency, teams heading in new directions, or just plain old chemistry issues, players move from team to team. From the Yankees buying Babe Ruth to the Angels signing Josh Hamilton, we’ve seen these moves work out in all sorts of different ways. Now its time […]
Three Potential Busts to Avoid on Draft Day: Teheran, Chapman, Hamels
This article first appeared on wetalkfantasysports.com by Jason Johnson. You can find him on twitter @y2trips. Now that I’ve covered three players that I’m really high on, let’s look at a few players that I think have zero chance to live up to their ADP. Please note that current ADP data has been pulled from FantasyPros.com's consensus, […]
2016 Outfield Prospects and Dynasty Rankings
This is an outfield prospects omnibus, a one stop clearinghouse for all of the profiles I created in the last month. With this post finished, I'll have just enough time to whip through starting pitching before we're too deep into dynasty draft season. You can also read about catchers, first base, second base, shortstop, and third base. Mostly, […]
Industry Mock Draft Reactions: Most Regrettable Pick?
Back again with more insight into the industry mock draft that took place last Thursday. This time we’re looking at the picks that each of us wished we could give the ol’ Men in Black memory wipe to everyone else. Again, I’ll be following everyone’s thoughts with a brief commentary of my own because it’s […]
Robinson Chirinos (CA, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~300 CURRENT ADP: 320 ANALYSIS: Robinson Chirinos looks to be in the catbird seat as far as the Texas Rangers’ starting catcher job goes. He isn’t going to turn into anything different as far as his average goes -- his batting profile doesn’t call for anything higher than the .230s -- but […]
2016 Outfield Prospects and Dynasty Rankings - AL West Edition
Texas has the top prospects of the division on lock down, and the outfield is no exception. All six of the high profile names are Rangers or Astros. Only a few of the "best of the rest" aren't from those two clubs. Those exceptions are with Seattle. Overall, I have 31 names to share, some […]
Ian Desmond (SS, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~100 CURRENT ADP: 113.3 ANALYSIS: The erratic play of Ian Desmond, the long-standing shortstop for the Washington Nationals, has brought up some uncertainty about his draft stock. Fantasy owners can view Desmond as an aging player in a physically demanding position who is starting to decline, or as a player who still […]
Martin Perez (SP, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~370 CURRENT ADP: 468 ANALYSIS: Martin Perez has seen an awfully volatile start to his young career. After displaying the best April in the MLB in 2014, (1.42 ERA through five starts, two CG shutouts, 5-0 record) he went down in May with a torn UCL and underwent Tommy John surgery. He […]
Yu Darvish (SP, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~90 CURRENT ADP: 122 ANALYSIS: Fantasy owners are often weary of spending valuable picks or dollars on injury-prone players, especially strikeout machines coming off Tommy John surgery. Such is the fear surrounding Texas Rangers ace Yu Darvish, who appeared in just one spring training outing in 2015 before going under the knife. […]
Delino DeShields (OF, TEX) - 2016 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
BALLER MOVE: Target ~210 CURRENT ADP: 235 ANALYSIS: Delino DeShields isn't quite on Billy Hamilton's level, but like Hamilton, he has a 100-SB season on his minor league resume. Hwever, unlike Hamilton, DeShields can actually hit. As a rookie, he posted a .261/.344/.374 line with 83 runs in 121 games, maintaining the double-digit walk rate […]
Can You Trust Yu Darvish in 2016?
The Texas Rangers are a team with serious playoff aspirations. Look no further than their interest in Ian Desmond for left field to see the team is willing to entertain all possibilities to contend in the AL West. The Houston Astros made a serious step forward in 2015 and the Rangers are the only competition […]
Five 2016 Second Base Sleepers
After you get past the elite options at second base, guys like Jose Altuve, things can get a little iffy. Because of that, it is pretty easy to just settle for a low-end player, punt that position, or even worse, reach for an overvalued player. As we get closer to Opening Day, here are some […]
Mitch Moreland (1B, TEX) - Fantasy Baseball Sleeper
BALLER MOVE: Target ~220 CURRENT ADP: 237.3 ANALYSIS: In 2015, Mitch Moreland got back to the 20 HR mark he attained in 2013, but he also, surprisingly, made across-the-board improvements to his slash line. In 2013 (his last time eclipsing 500 PA), Moreland hit .232/.299/.437, but those numbers jumped up to .278/.330/.482 last year. Moreland set […]
Five Deep Sleepers at Catcher For 2016
Welcome to the war room. We’re investigating which deeper catchers could turn a nice profit for only the savviest of fantasy owners going into 2016. Catcher is an extremely volatile position, with most of them putting their bodies through the ringer during the course of the season. It isn’t a particular deep position, but rest […]
2016 Breakout Candidates: Young AL Outfielders To Target
Here at RotoBaller we’ve been cranking out tons of preseason content for some time now. We might be a little obsessed with baseball ‘round these parts. But that’s okay, because so are you! And what better way to celebrate the advent of draft season than to profile potential breakouts and busts? Last week’s series focused […]
Five Hitters to Target in OBP Leagues
Not all leagues are created equal. What I mean is not all leagues abide by the same standards. Some owners have stuck by the traditional 5X5 roto leagues, while others have transitioned to 6X6 leagues with such exotic categories as OBP, K/9 and SLG. I’m not here to say which format is best, (though I […]
Saves and Holds: AL West Bullpen Depth Chart
With the 2016 fantasy baseball season approaching, bullpen depth charts can be tricky to decipher when entering your fantasy drafts. Projections of who will be vital to their respective team and to your fantasy team will be analyzed over the course of the next two months. Below I've identified the projected AL West closers, setup men, and […]
Texas Rangers Top MLB Prospects for 2016 Dynasty Leagues
More than any other team in baseball, the Texas Rangers snuck up and emerged as the most surprising contender in 2015. Both the Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs had been rebuilding for many years so though earlier than many expected, it seemed more plausible that the Astros or Cubs would compete than the Rangers would. […]
Five Undervalued AL Starting Pitcher Targets for 2016 Drafts
Winning a fantasy baseball league often depends upon finding value in the middle and end of the draft. Today I'm going to focus on a few starting pitchers from the American Leagues who fit the bill. You can find more draft values and potential sleepers in our running list all preseason long, and be sure […]